The sound was unmistakable and led me outdoors to face the thick woods across the road. In the advancing twilight the sound pierced the darkness again, and then again. The ghostly mournful wail, best ...

Several readers have phoned with reports of “eerie, whistling sounds” coming from their neighborhoods in the past week or so. My step-daughter also heard it last weekend, from the woodlot behind my ...

Three screech-owls are found in North America: eastern, western and whiskered. But about 22 screech-owl species are found in the world, all in the Americas. Estimated breeding populations of ...

Q. Why are they called screech owls when the only sound I’ve ever heard them make are warbling noises that remind me of musical Morse code? A. I was able to answer this question a few years ago during ...

Lately, you may have heard them: “hoot” owls. No such critter named “hoot owl” appears in any field guide, but their calls earn them the moniker. The “hoo-hoo-hoo” kinds of calls belong to either ...

On the chilly morning of Dec. 5, Alex Patton headed into a coffee shop in Utica. On his way out, he glanced across the nearby stream and noticed the bird in the accompanying photo. Sharp-eyed Patton ...

DEAR JOAN: We live about a mile from Mission San Jose, and sometimes I hear birds making a “hoo-hoo” call at around 1 or 2 a.m. We were wondering if the calls are being made by owls, doves or pigeons?

Q. Why are they called screech owls when the only sound I’ve ever heard them make are warbling noises that remind me of musical Morse code? A. I was able to answer this question a few years ago during ...